Flood mitigation project for Sibu, Kuching to start next month

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KUCHING: The first phase of the flood mitigation project for Sibu and Kuching will start next month.

Natural Resources and Environment Minister Dato Sri Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar, who announced this, said the federal government has allocated RM250 million for the project, of which RM100 million will be for Sibu and RM150 million for Kuching.

“This is part of the government’s efforts to mitigate floods that often occur in several areas around Kuching and Sibu and if there are no obstacles, the first phase of the flood mitigation project in Sibu and Kuching will be carried out simultaneously in March,” he told a press conference after paying Chief Minister Datuk Amar Abang Johari Tun Openg a courtesy call at his office in Wisma Bapa Malaysia here yesterday.

The Santubong MP also explained that for Kuching, the flood mitigation project has been divided into several phases to tackle issues in flood-prone areas around the city.

“For instance, if we look at what had occurred in January last year, flooding was caused by excess rainwater pouring from the land to the sea. When the tide rises, the water has no other place to flow out of the city.

“As such, we will carry out the project in several phases as planned.

“All these will be considered by the federal government after the implementation of this RM250 million project,” he said.

He also revealed that the federal government had allocated RM639.7 million to implement 336 projects covering biodiversity, strengthening the State Forest Department system, Heart of Borneo (HoB) and more in Sarawak under his ministry for the Second Rolling Plan of the 11th Malaysia Plan.

“For this year, RM108.2 million has been allocated and this amount does not include the first phase of the flood mitigation project in Kuching and Sibu.”

Wan Junaidi also touched on his discussion with Abang Johari concerning the certification of forest products produced by the state.

He opined that a certification system that can be used internationally should be established so that the country’s forest products such as wood products can be marketed in countries such as Europe, Australia, New Zealand and the United States.

“Currently, only a few of Malaysia’s forest products can enter the market of countries under the European Union (EU) due to no certification.

“As such, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MNRE) will discuss with the state government to see how Sarawak can be involved in this certification,” he remarked, adding that Abang Johari had also requested for MNRE officers to discuss with the State Forest Department how to coordinate implementation of this certification before the state government can make its decision.